Psalm 144

English Standard Version

My Rock and My Fortress

Of David.

144 Blessed be the Lord, my ^(A)rock,
    ^(B)who trains my hands for war,
    and my fingers for battle;
²he is my ^(C)steadfast love and my ^(D)fortress,
    my ^(E)stronghold and my deliverer,
my ^(F)shield and he in whom I take refuge,
    who ^(G)subdues peoples^[a] under me.

³O Lord, ^(H)what is man that you ^(I)regard him,
or the son of man that you think of him?
⁴^(J)Man is like a breath;
his days are like ^(K)a passing ^(L)shadow.

⁵^(M)Bow your heavens, O Lord, and come down!
    ^(N)Touch the mountains so that they smoke!
⁶^(O)Flash forth the lightning and scatter them;
    ^(P)send out your arrows and rout them!
⁷^(Q)Stretch out your hand from on high;
    ^(R)rescue me and deliver me from the many waters,
    from the hand ^(S)of foreigners,
⁸whose mouths speak ^(T)lies
    and whose right hand is ^(U)a right hand of falsehood.

⁹I will sing ^(V)a new song to you, O God;
    upon ^(W)a ten-stringed harp I will play to you,
¹⁰who gives victory to kings,
    who ^(X)rescues David his servant from the cruel sword.
¹¹Rescue me and deliver me
    from the hand ^(Y)of foreigners,
whose mouths speak ^(Z)lies
    and whose right hand is a right hand of falsehood.

¹²May our sons in their youth
    be like ^(AA)plants full grown,
our daughters like ^(AB)corner pillars
    cut for the structure of a palace;
¹³^(AC)may our granaries be full,
    ^(AD)providing all kinds of produce;
may our sheep bring forth thousands
    and ten thousands in our fields;
¹⁴may our cattle be heavy with young,
    suffering no mishap or failure in bearing;^[b]
may there be no ^(AE)cry of distress in our streets!
¹⁵^(AF)Blessed are the people to whom such blessings fall!
    ^(AG)Blessed are the people whose God is the Lord!

Footnotes

Psalm 144:2 Many Hebrew manuscripts, Dead Sea Scroll, Jerome, Syriac, Aquila; most Hebrew manuscripts subdues my people
Psalm 144:14 Hebrew with no breaking in or going out

2 Thessalonians 2

English Standard Version

The Man of Lawlessness

2 Now concerning ^(A)the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our ^(B)being gathered together to him, we ask you, brothers,^[a] ²not to be quickly shaken in mind or ^(C)alarmed, either ^(D)by a spirit or a ^(E)spoken word, or ^(F)a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that ^(G)the day of the Lord has come. ³^(H)Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, ^(I)unless the rebellion comes first, and ^(J)the man of lawlessness^[b] is revealed, ^(K)the son of destruction,^[c] ⁴who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, ^(L)proclaiming himself to be God. ⁵Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? ⁶And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time. ⁷For ^(M)the mystery of lawlessness ^(N)is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. ⁸And then ^(O)the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus ^(P)will kill with ^(Q)the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by ^(R)the appearance of his coming. ⁹The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan ^(S)with all power and false signs and wonders, ¹⁰and with all wicked deception for ^(T)those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. ¹¹Therefore ^(U)God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe ^(V)what is false, ¹²in order that all may be condemned ^(W)who did not believe the truth but ^(X)had pleasure in unrighteousness.

Stand Firm

¹³But ^(Y)we ought always to give thanks to God for you, ^(Z)brothers beloved by the Lord, because God chose you ^(AA)as the firstfruits^[d] ^(AB)to be saved, ^(AC)through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth. ¹⁴To this he called you through ^(AD)our gospel, ^(AE)so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. ¹⁵So then, brothers, ^(AF)stand firm and hold to ^(AG)the traditions that you were taught by us, either ^(AH)by our spoken word or by ^(AI)our letter.

¹⁶Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, ^(AJ)who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good ^(AK)hope through grace, ¹⁷comfort your hearts and ^(AL)establish them in every good work and word.

Footnotes

2 Thessalonians 2:1 Or brothers and sisters; also verses 13, 15
2 Thessalonians 2:3 Some manuscripts sin
2 Thessalonians 2:3 Greek the son of perdition (a Hebrew idiom)
2 Thessalonians 2:13 Some manuscripts chose you from the beginning

2 Peter 3:14-18

English Standard Version

Final Words

¹⁴^(A)Therefore, beloved, since you are waiting for these, be diligent to be found by him ^(B)without spot or ^(C)blemish, and ^(D)at peace. ¹⁵And count ^(E)the patience of our Lord as salvation, just as ^(F)our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you ^(G)according to the wisdom given him, ¹⁶as he does in all his letters when he speaks in them of these matters. ^(H)There are some things in them that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, ^(I)as they do the other Scriptures. ¹⁷You therefore, beloved, ^(J)knowing this beforehand, ^(K)take care that you are not carried away with the error of lawless people and lose your own stability. ¹⁸But ^(L)grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. ^(M)To him be the glory both now and to the day of ^(N)eternity. Amen.